GUEST CRITIC REVIEW:

     It has been a long and winding road for Marilyn Manson, once one of the most popular and shocking music acts ever to grace us. Known for some of the best industrial metal songs such as "The Beautiful People" and "The Fight Song" to name a few, has taken a step back! Maybe dare I say… a step up? The new Manson album "The High End of Low" is an ode to his past but with a certain maturity that has not been seen on albums prior to "Eat Me, Drink Me". The truth is, Manson has never been this lyrically impressive. For someone who is usually yelling obscenities and singing about drugs, G-d, and bashing of government it's nice to finally see he has something else in mind for us; love and heartbreak.

    Much of his last album "Eat Me, Drink Me" was about his rough divorce from his wife Dita Von Teese and elements of this are brought back in "The High End of Low". "Eat Me, Drink Me" was not viewed as his best work, nor did many fans buy into it. However, I thought it was one of his best albums because for the first time Manson seemed...human! He picks up the same love, lust, and depression that goes with break ups in "The High End of Low." but also adds in all the Manson quirks of the past.

    The album begins with one of his best "Devour" which is one of the many love songs on the album; about being obsessively in love with someone but the person on the other end is not emotionally as attached as Manson is to her. The lyrics and music to the song could not be perfect and cannot see why anyone couldn’t relate to this song. "Running to the Edge of the World" is my favorite song on the entire album and is one of the most powerful songs Manson has ever recorded. This song proved to me just how mature the man has become and is a shame most people will probably not hear it due to a lack of interest and popularity the band has lost. This song has many meanings depending on how you interpret it that have to do with being lost in what might be a never ending losing battle. However, with all of Manson's maturity and style come some of the more childish and unnecessary songs.

    First on this list would be "Pretty as a Swastika". Although he is trying to say that this woman he is singing about is a cruel and miserable person, clearly he is using swastika to both be over the top and of course shock people. To be perfectly honest it doesn’t shock me because it is too obvious what Manson is trying to do. The song is not bad, in fact, I can’t think of a song on this entire album that sounded musically bad, only the lyrics to a few songs are old hat and too repetitive to his career. So in the long run, yes I get it Manson the person you are referring to is an awful bitch, but I would have to say she is probably not nearly as bad as a Nazi. The other two songs that are pretty much nonsense are "Arma-godd-damn-motherfuckin-geddon" and "We're From America".

  The “Arma-godd-damn-motherfuckin-geddon" can be described as let me just say, any curse my mind can think of for the next three minutes and thirty nine seconds. It’s just too much however, the style of the song is amazing and sounds like Manson back in the early 90's. It also has one of the best bass riffs I have heard in a while. "We're From America" is really just a typical America bash song that doesn't have any other purpose. This is a very popular genre in its own; one I disagree with completely. What I disagree most about it is that artists such as Manson and others who like to have an America bashing song are really just doing it to make money because they think adolescent teens are into this. The truth is most of them are not. Besides, America can't be so bad if you’re making insane amounts of money selling these America bash songs, right?

    Overall this is a very good album. Sure Manson has lost popularity in the last few years. Manson’s last album and this one were the least sold of any of his albums which is a shame because they have some of his best work. If you are a Manson fan, this album is right up your alley. If you are looking for something new look no further because this is your album. I hope this album gets heard because it is one of the best albums to come out this year (not that there was much competition). One final thought; many people would tell you they believe Manson's career to be on its way out, personally I do not see that happening. Many artists fall in the rankings after a long and successful career. To name a few Metallica, Iron Maiden, U2, Jay-Z, Dr Dre, Snoop Dogg, etc. All of them have at one point come back and put out very successful albums. So do I think Marilyn Manson will be back on the charts again? It is safe to say......YES!